Most of us in the industry associate NCL with being the pioneer in introducing a more relaxed dining experience. Something which I personally enjoy is not having to dine at set times such as 6pm or 9pm and having the freedom to book a time that best suits you as a couple or family – or solo for that matter.
NCL Viva really impresses in the inclusion side of dining, with included restaurants Hudson’s and The Commodore Room both offering a luxury dining/bistro feel across the board. They are smaller and more intimate than most larger dining areas on competitors and that lends to a true restaurant feel and vibe.
I’d recommend booking these restaurants to ensure you get the slot you want. I was a little disappointed that these couldn’t be booked on the NCL app, but on arrival, there was never an issue with getting a table and I was assured that even if they were full that the ship supplied pagers to advise guests when a table was free so you could potter off and enjoy a pre-dinner drink or stroll.
The main dining area is called The Surfside Café and, as per most ships, it’s located close to the main pool – expect top-class grills and one of my favourites: a noodle broth. Ice cream machines had the kids line up and the desserts looked incredible, but I have to admit, after endless visits to the different counters I never quite made it to that section!
The Local Bar & Grill, also included, is where everyone went to watch the Women’s World Cup final. I can imagine how busy and fun this section could get for certain occasions – a quick tip: don’t leave without ordering a portion of nachos.
Norwegian Viva also offers a dining option in Indulge Food Hall, I didn’t get to experience this on Viva but I got to experience it onboard Prima and I really enjoyed the relaxed atmosphere here and it was one of my favourite outdoor spaces on the ship.
Speciality Restaurants
In my opinion, you can’t really go on an NCL ship without checking out everyone’s favourite – Cagney’s Steakhouse – ITTN’s Shane Cullen even requested a doggy bag to be brought home for him!
It is in the speciality restaurant arena that the FREE AT SEA package comes into its own, and again we highly recommend purchasing it.
Included in our 2-night speciality dining experience we opted Palomar Restaurant, choosing this Mediterranean dining option to match the stunning day we had ashore in Ibiza town – and it didn’t disappoint – I’d highly recommend the Dover Sole and at $45 it’s well worth buying the FREE AT SEA option.
For our second choice, we selected Onda by Scarpetta serving some of the best Italian food I’ve sampled outside of Italy, We ate at a table outside and we were thrilled to be dining as we set sail from Majorca and made our way to Barcelona. Dishes here are modelled from the original Scarpetta in New York’s Madison Avenue and start at $14 for a starter and $25 for a pasta with mains from $30.
On our final night, we were guests of NCL in their famous Le Bistro Restaurant. Another beautiful menu inspired by France and perfect as the ship sailed on to Cannes. The décor here is breathtaking with statement chandeliers adoring the dining area.
We didn’t get to try Hasuki, the teppanyaki restaurant, which has a cover charge of $59 which allows you to select 5 courses. The Mexican at Los Lobos, and Japanese at Nama Sushi & Sashimi all looked equally as delicious – but like all good things – there is never enough time for it all! Roll on my next NCL – and after all that food, that’s literally what I did coming off the ship.
